Goodbye Jobs, Hello QE3?

"It's official: Most economists have been way too optimistic about pace of the economic recovery. Will the latest jobs numbers spur the Fed to act again?"

Goodbye jobs, hello QE3? - The Term Sheet: Fortune's deals blog Term Sheet

Gold: The 4,000-Year-Old Bubble

"It's worth something because people have always thought it's worth something. And that's really weird, because what it tells you is gold is in a 4,000-year-old bubble. And if it's lasted 4,000 years, maybe it will last another 4,000 years. Who am I to say?"

Gold: The 4,000-Year-Old Bubble : Planet Money : NPR

Is Inflation Making a Comeback?

"The claim has a surface plausibility. If the money supply is growing and prices are rising, what more evidence do we need? But first impressions, in this case, are badly misleading."

Is Inflation Making a Comeback? - Reason Magazine

Zimbabwe's 100-Trillion-Dollar Bill

"The notes are a hot commodity among currency collectors and novelty buyers, fetching 15 times what they were officially worth in circulation."

Zimbabwe's 100-Trillion-Dollar Bill Is a Hot Collectible - WSJ.com

Wealth Creation Explained in 32 Seconds

America's Reckless Money-Printing

"Last week, Ben Bernanke suggested that the US base interest rate will stay close to zero for an 'extended period'. It's been there since December 2008."

America's reckless money-printing could put the world back into crisis - Telegraph

Even Children Understand Inflation...

Hayek and Private Currency

"Toby Baxendale was recently interviewed by Dave Birch of Consult Hyperion. The interview talks about both the goals of the Cobden Centre and Hayek’s beliefs about competing private currencies as a pathway towards honest money and how this might be achieved via digital technology."

Cobden Centre Radio: Toby Baxendale on Hayek and Private Currency » The Cobden Centre

5 Problems with Ultra-Low Interest Rates

"The Fed may have good and honorable reasons for pushing interest rates very low. But when they're left there for an extended period, distortions can begin to creep into the economy."

5 Problems with Ultra-Low Interest Rates - Daniel Indiviglio - Business - The Atlantic

American Banking and Monetary Problems

"We have fundamentally fragile banking systems, and partly it’s because our monetary system is difficult to deal with. We’ve got a long history of restrictions on banks that have weakened banks in the United States. And rather than remove the restrictions — the regulations that have weakened banks — we keep adding patches on top of them."

Friday Interview: Addressing American Banking and Monetary Problems

Hoenig Says Fed Anti-Capitalistic

"[Thomas] Hoeing’s courage and principled vision elevate him to the status of a “good economist,” as defined by Frederic Bastiat over 150 years ago. "

Hoenig Says Fed Anti-Capitalistic, Taking Shortcuts To Greatness - Great Speculations - Buys, holds, and hopes - Forbes

The High Cost Of Easy Payments

"The nature of credit cards ensures that your brain is anaesthetized against the pain of payment."

As fascinating as this is, it's all chump change. Nothing numbs the pain of spending like getting elected.

The High Cost Of Easy Payments | Wired Science | Wired.com:

When Private Money Becomes a Felony Offense

"It is indisputably clear that the power to coin money and regulate its value is one that the Constitution delegates to Congress. It's an enumerated power, and one of the big ones. It's also clear that the Constitution bars states from making coins other than gold or silver legal tender. But it is not clear that there is a constitutional basis or a logic for prohibiting individuals from making and selling pieces of gold and silver and using them, on a voluntary basis, as money—i.e., to 'compete with' the official coinage of the U.S."

Seth Lipsky: When Private Money Becomes a Felony Offense - WSJ.com

Inflation Watch

"Effectively, wage earners have been fooled."

ONS inflation slip-up leaves millions out of pocket | Business | The Guardian

World Bank Chief Riles Up Economists By Talking Gold Standard

Standard? What's a standard?

World Bank Chief Riles Up Economists By Talking Gold Standard - Agustino Fontevecchia - Moral Hazard - Forbes

Money on the Dark Side of the Moon

As is often the case, I recently had music playing in the background at my house. This particular morning I had Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon record playing (yes, among other forms of media, I listen to records). As some of you know, the song Money is the first song on side two of the album. As I dropped the needle, it occurred to me that, even though the word "money" has a specific meaning to me in economic terms, I had never really studied the lyrics to this well-known song. So I dared to examine what "money" means to songwriter and bassist Roger Waters of Pink Floyd - at least what it meant to him in the early 1970's when he wrote the song.

By 1973, Pink Floyd had already recorded eight albums, including a movie soundtrack and a #1 album in 1970 called Atom Heart Mother. Therefore, it is safe to assume that when the song was written, Roger Waters was already struggling with his new found fame, and enjoying the money that accompanies a #1 album release.

Now, I am not a lyricist by any means, and I may very well be interpreting the song completely wrong. Nevertheless, with the historical context in place, here is my amateur interpretation of Money by Pink Floyd.

Artist: Pink Floyd
Album: Dark Side of the Moon
Lyrics by: Roger Waters



Click here for to see it performed in London in 1994.

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Original lyrics in bold font
Layman interpretation of the lyrics in normal font

Money, get away
Get a good job with more pay
And you're okay

At first, money is good and it is allows you to live comfortably.

Money, it's a gas
Grab that cash with both hands
And make a stash

Life becomes fun once you have a little disposable income.

New car, caviar, four star daydream
Think I'll buy me a football team

Once you become wealthy, your wants become a little more expensive - sometimes they seem absurd (i.e. buying a football team). But, who are we to judge him on his wants.

Money get back
I'm all right Jack
Keep your hands off my stack

With wealth comes friends, agents, managers, and obligations. These people are normally looking for an easy handout.

Money, it's a hit
Don't give me that
Do goody good b&ll$h!t

There are no shortage of suggestions as to how you should spend your money. Even though keeping your money for yourself is considered "greedy" to some.

I'm in the hi-fidelity
First class traveling set
And I think I need a Learjet

It's funny how wants become needs. He "wanted" a football team, and now he "needs" fancy luggage and a Learjet to match. However, again, who are we to judge him on his wants and needs - it's his money.

Money, it's a crime
Share it fairly
But don't take a slice of my pie

Once you become rich, it is easy to judge others and tell them how to live and spend their money, but leave his lifestyle out of it - remember it's his success.

Money, so they say
Is the root of all evil
Today

But if you ask for a rise
It's no surprise that they're
Giving none away

Those who do not have money, and some that do, point to money as the "root of all evil." But, if you notice, they rarely part with theirs. It's fairly easy to sit back judge others based on what they do (or don't do) with their money. But, in reality, it is their money, and they should be allowed to spend it on football teams, matching luggage, Learjets, or maybe even give it all away to charity. Besides, the common man enjoys watching football, making luggage, and building Lear jets.

In the end, money is not the "root of all evil"; however, mandating what one does with their money is not far from it.

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A quick note: In a 1987 interview, Roger Waters was asked, "Apart from [being successful as a band] what were the main problems associated with such immense success?"

"Mainly the one of what to do with all the money!" he answered, "You go through this thing where you think of all the good you could do with it by giving it away. But, in the end, you decide to keep it!"